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State of Emergency in Anambra

This Day (Lagos)
EDITORIAL
January 18, 2005
Posted to the web January 18, 2005
Lagos
Last week, the move in the Senate to offer the president an excuse to declare a
state of emergency in Anambra State failed. Ostensibly acting on the report of
a fact-finding committee led by Senator Iyabo Anisulowo, some senators had
attempted to present a request to the Senate to advise the president to deploy
"every constitutional means available" to resolve the Anambra crisis.
From all indications, this is a re-incarnation of the failed attempt by Senator
Arthur Nzeribe to procure emergency rule in Anambra State. While that of
Nzeribe was aborted before getting to the floor of the Senate for lack of
support, the latest plot was checkmated by a technicality, namely, that the
Senate could not debate matters under judicial adjudication.
While we concede that a parliament is free to debate and advise on any matter,
we believe that those canvassing a state of emergency in Anambra are either
mischievous or misguided. There is nothing extraordinary in the Anambra crisis
to warrant the disruption of the democratic process in favour of emergency
rule.
In the first place, none of the seven ingredients for declaring a state of
emergency under Section 305 of the Constitution fits the Anambra situation. The
only two that remotely come close to it are one: "there is actual breakdown of
public order and public safety in the Federation or any part thereof to such
extent as to require extraordinary measures to restore peace and security; and
two, "there is a clear and present danger of an actual breakdown of public
order and public safety in the Federation or any part thereof requiring
extraordinary measures to avert the danger."
Only a mischief maker or a misguided person would call for emergency rule in
Anambra State on account of actual breakdown of law and order and public safety
or a clear and present danger of their breaking down.
As we write this, Edo State is under armed siege by bandits who have taken to
robbing, looting, and killing of both civilians and policemen at will. To our
knowledge, none has called for a state of emergency there on account of this
palpable breakdown of law and order. Rather, the federal government has
bolstered police presence with soldiers to arrest the situation.
Again, just before the last independence day, militiaman, Mijaheed Asari-Dokubo
who had held the Niger-Delta hostage for quite a long time, threatened to blow
up oil installations and engage in other sabotage activities from October 1
last year. For his past activities and threat which constituted a clear and
present danger to the federation, the president did not proclaim a state of
emergency in Rivers State. On the contrary, the presidency invited him over for
dialogue.
In the case of Anambra State, the simulated breakdown of law and order are
criminal activities by a handful of persons who are clearly known to the law
but highly-connected to the presidency. As a matter of fact, the governor
himself gave early warnings of the plot to cause last November's mayhem in aid
of emergency declaration. The saving grace was that potential victims of the
sponsored arson heeded the state government's appeal not to retaliate to
prevent a general breakdown of law and order needed to justify the declaration.
All well-meaning Nigerians, including the national chairman of the ruling
party, have said repeatedly that what constitutes the public disorder in
Anambra State are nothing but heinous crimes by a few persons which the police
have the constitutional mandate to deal with. Surely, it doesn't require
extraordinary measures for the police to deal with kidnappers, arsonists and
plain vandals. The fact that the police have not been able to apprehend these
criminals, masquerading under politics and are well known to the public and law
enforcers, is one of the great puzzles of the Obasanjo administration.
On the other hand, if the pro-emergency senators are anchoring their call on
the purported confession of the Anambra governor and his traducer to electoral
rigging, the tribunals are the constitutional instruments for resolving the
matter. To sustain democracy and the rule of law, we must follow due process.
And we expect a lawmaker to show the way.
We are surprised that instead of advising the police, for instance, to
investigate and prosecute Chris Uba who has not only confessed to electoral
rigging but has also offered to provide the evidence of his crime, some
senators would rather advise the president to take to the dangerous diversion
of declaring a state of emergency.
If the Senate is to offer any advice at all, it is that the president should
stop treating the Anambra crisis as a party affair; he should see it for the
criminal activities that it really is and proceed to deal accordingly with it.

   

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